Mudgeeraba-based 4WD accessories firm Chief Products blazes path to US market from its Gold Coast base

A Gold Coast 4WD accessories company is blazing its own trail with its sights firmly set on the US market after raising close to $250,000 from investors.

A GOLD Coast 4WD accessories company is blazing its own trail with its sights firmly set on the US market after raising close to $250,000 from investors.

Chief Products was founded by Bill and Samantha Mackin in 2013 after the pair purchased a Jeep Grand Cherokee and struggled to find accessories to go with it.

“I went out to put some gear on it so we could take it off road and no one was making anything,” he said.

“Most of the off-road shops did not want to know me. They were not interested in Jeep.

“Growing up in the States Jeep is an icon. It is the original off-road brand.

“I thought, this is a bit weird.”

Bill Mackin’s Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland, which has been fitted out with the company's products. Picture: Jerad Williams

Mr Mackin said he spied an opportunity to move away from the small advertising agency he ran to create a new business.

He engaged fans of the vehicle on an online Jeep forum and asked what parts they most wanted to buy.

Mr Mackin said he then reached out to an engineering firm to draw up designs.

The first three products launched to the market comprised a sump protection plate; recovery point and recovery hook.

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He said the designs were an immediate hit and within a week the company had a waiting list of 50 to 100 people.

“I said there is something here,” he said.

“At that point it was still a side project.”

Mr Mackin said several years later he decided to go full-time with his new venture.

“It was around the time of the “I bought a Jeep” commercials,” he said.

“They fuelled the popularity of the vehicle and we rode that wave.”

Mr Mackin said from 2015-2016 Australian auto-manufacturers were starting to wind up their operations and he was able to add former Holden employee and experienced engineer Ben Grams to his team as ‘chief’ of engineering.

Mr Mackin said the idea behind the company was simple: design products that fit ‘flush’ in Jeep vehicles with aesthetically-pleasing qualities.

“Bullbars look the same as they did 30 years ago so we bringing a design-centric approach and style to the industry,” he said.

“Our thoughts are: what would these OEM (original equipment manufacturer) companies do if they were building a concept car?

“What would Jeep or Ford do? What would the accessories look like?”

He said another difference in their approach was to make their marketing inclusive — appealing to all markets rather than just petrolheads.

“When you go out on the trails there are people with nice, lifted, vehicles but they tended to be gear heads and not very welcoming to families and other people wanting to go off-road,” he said.

“The companies offering off-road accessories were speaking to those people instead of trying to include families and other people.”

Mr Mackin said his message was that it didn’t matter how big your tyres were as long as you liked to “get out and enjoy nature”.

The company, which is forecasting revenue of $1.2 million this financial year, recently completed a round of crowdsourced equity funding, raising $249,709 from 121 investors.

The funds will be used to clear a 1000-strong backlog of orders.

Mr Mackin said the investors made ideal ambassadors for Chief Products.

“I liked the idea of bringing these people with us … because of the energy it brings. All these people who invest will go out and tell their friends.”

He said the next step for the company is rolling out new products to fit vehicles other than the Grand Cherokee.

“Right now we just do the Grand Cherokee,” he said.

“Once we start doing the Jeep Wrangler we expect growth. Jeep released statistics showing 98 per cent of Wrangler owners accessorise their vehicle whereas for the Cherokee it is more like 8 per cent.”

He said there were also growth opportunities in the US where the company has distributers on the East and West Coasts.

“We have just scratched the surface in the North American market.

“We have 30 retailers and we could easily ramp that up to 100.”